


Everything in Between

by Sohotthateveryonedied



Category: Teen Titans (Animated Series)
Genre: Breakfast Club AU, F/M, High School AU, basically the Breakfast Club but with a Teen Titans spin on it, i adjusted some stuff to better fit the characters, listen these kids have hard lives okay, mentions of abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-07
Updated: 2017-12-07
Packaged: 2019-02-11 22:56:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12945813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sohotthateveryonedied/pseuds/Sohotthateveryonedied
Summary: A Teen Titans Breakfast Club AU with Dick Grayson as a "criminal,” Kori Anders as a "princess,” Gar Logan as a "brain,” Vic Stone as an "athlete,” and Raven Roth as a "basket case.” Contains Robstar and Bbrae.





	Everything in Between

**Author's Note:**

> Characters:
> 
> Starfire= Kori Anders
> 
> Robin= Richard "Dick" Grayson
> 
> Cyborg= Victor Stone
> 
> Beast Boy= Garfield Logan
> 
> Raven= Raven Roth
> 
> Slade= Mr. Wilson
> 
> Honorable Mentions: Terra Markov (Terra), Roy Harper (Speedy), Wally West (Kid Flash), Karen Beecher (Bumblebee), Komi Anders (Blackfire), Ry Anders (Wildfire), Joseph Wilson (Jericho), Garth (Aqualad), Rita (Elastigirl), Steve (Mento), Jason Todd (Red Hood aka the guy I think Red X is aka the second Robin), Cassandra Cain (Black Bat aka Orphan aka Batgirl), Tim Drake (Red Robin aka the third Robin), Damian Wayne (the fifth Robin), Bruce Wayne (duh), Donna (Wonder Girl), Toni (Argent)

_Dear Mr. Wilson,_

_We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was we did wrong, but we think you're crazy to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us as you want to see us. In the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. Whether it be a brain, or an athlete, or a basket case, or a princess, or a criminal, we were brainwashed to see ourselves as the stereotypes forced onto us. That's how we saw ourselves and each other when we met in the library this morning._

* * *

It was a crisp Saturday morning, right in the middle of March. That awkward time when it was too warm for a coat but too cold to not bring one anyway. An average day for most, aside from the five young teenagers who, instead of taking advantage of their weekend, were walking through the doors of Jump City High School—home of the Titans—for detention. 

Little did they know that this one day would change everything.

Ten minutes before 7am, and Garfield Logan was the first to enter the library. He was small, no more than five foot four, with blond hair and childishly round green eyes. He wore a green sweater and khakis, and he settled in his seat at one of the six tables in the middle of the room. He folded his hands on his desk politely as he waited for the other students to arrive.

He looked awfully out of place in a place like detention, where one would expect to see troublemakers and hooligans, rather than the shy boy who no one really knew but could easily tell was about as harmful as a butterfly.

Next to enter was popular girl Kori Anders, who, unlike Garfield, was very well-known around the school. Her long red hair was tied in its usual perky ponytail that bounced and brushed the back of her pink jacket as she walked. She chose to sit at the table in front, smoothing out the skirt of her lavender dress as she did so. She looked around, taking in the sight of Garfield, who held up his hand in a small wave. She looked away pointedly, and his hand faltered before returning to its clasped position on the wood.

Kori smiled with relief when she saw a good friend, Victor Stone, walk in. She was a cheerleader, so naturally she knew the school's quarterback and star athlete of the football team. It was because of him the Titans won nearly every game of the season, so he was one of the more popular people around the school. 

Vic was big and muscular, fairly intimidating to most, especially once he became a senior. He had dark skin and wore a letterman jacket over a light blue hoodie. There was the tiniest hint of a limp to his walk, but it was barely noticeable even if one paid close attention. He stood uncertainly by the chair next to Kori for a moment before she gestured an invitation for him to sit down, which he did. They exchanged greetings for a bit, waiting for detention to start. 

After him came a girl none of the present students recognized: Raven Roth. She, like Garfield, was a freshman. Her face was concealed behind the hood of a dark blue hoodie, one that hid her features from the world. She stomped to a table in the back behind Garfield and plopped down, taking out a book and immediately beginning to read without even acknowledging the other people in the room. They stared, but she didn't spare them a second glance.

Seconds before the hands on the clock hit seven was when the last student sauntered in. It was none other than Dick Grayson, the infamous bad boy of Jump City High. Nobody was the last last bit surprised when he marched in; he was known for being in and out of detention frequently. Such is the life of a rebel. 

The buckles of his army boots clanked as he walked. He wore a leather jacket over a skull t-shirt with a pair of dark sunglasses obscuring his eyes. When he passed the empty librarian's desk he stuck out an arm, knocking everything off and sending them thudding to the floor. 

Kori furrowed her eyebrows with distaste at his behavior. Dick caught this and winked, to which she made a disgusted face and focused her attention elsewhere. Dick settled at the table behind Kori and Vic, where he leaned dangerously far back in his seat and crossed his legs on the table, a picture of ease.

The final person to enter was the principal, Mr. Slade Wilson. He was an intimidating man, not in small part to the eyepatch he wore over his right eye as a result of an incident years back. His main job in the school was punishment, one he prided himself on being very good at. In his hand he carried five pieces of lined paper and five pencils, which he laid one by one on the tables in front of the students. 

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to detention," he said in his gravelly voice. He stopped at Dick's table. "Mr. Grayson, I wish I could say I’m surprised to see you here, but that would just be wishful thinking. I hope maybe today will finally be the last Saturday we get to spend together, hm?" 

Dick folded his hands behind his head and shrugged. "We can all dream, Mr. Wilson. Or can I call you Slade? You know, I think we've gotten close enough by now to be on first name basis, don't you think?"

That got a few giggles out of the others, but they stopped the second Wilson switched his glare onto them.

"Watch it, young man. Every time you disrespect me is another nail in your coffin.” 

When he turned his back, Dick rolled his eyes and held up his middle finger, but he dropped it before Wilson could see.

Wilson returned to the front of the room and cleared his throat. "Today we are going to be doing something a little different. Each of you is going to be writing me a thousand word essay telling me who you think you are. And I mean it when I say one thousand. You have nine hours. No talking, no moving from your seats, and absolutely _no_ sleeping. Questions?"

Dick raised a hand. "Yes, in fact I do have a question. Does Davy Jones know you raided his closet?"

Gar brought his hands to his face, trying to stiffle his giggles. 

Wilson smirked. “You think you're so funny? Well you, my friend, have just earned yourself another detention. Congratulations.” 

Dick faked a scared expression. "Oh no, I'm shaking in my boots.” 

Wilson didn't respond, just gave another cold glare before walking out of the library to his office down the hall. 

It was 7:04. 

Dick shrugged off his jacket, and Vic and Kori followed suit. Raven, however, kept her jacket on and her hood up.

After that there was silence aside from the occasional mutter from Gar about his essay or the quiet rustle of paper as Raven turned a page. That is, until Dick broke it with an exaggerated sigh. Looking over at Gar, who was still obsessing over his paper, he said, "Yo, nerdy dude."

Garfield's head snapped up and he turned to look at Dick. "Uh...Y-you mean me?” 

Dick rolled his eyes again behind his sunglasses, which were still firmly in place despite them being indoors. "Well duh, you see anybody else here writing his essay besides you?"

Garfield looked down at his table. "Well, no..."

"Anyway, you mind me asking what a goodie two shoes like you is doing in detention?” 

Gar blushed and looked down again. “Uh, I g-gotta work on my paper, so..."

Vic sighed heavily in annoyance. “Hey, don’t mean to interrupt but would you two mind maybe _not_ talking? Wilson is right down the hall, and I'm not missing next week's practice because of you.” 

Dick turned his attention to the large boy in front of him, crossing his arms. "Oops, my bad. It would be such a tragedy if you missed the oh-so important opportunity to roll around in the grass with other guys.”

Vic turned around in his seat, narrowing his eyes. "Shut up, butthead."

"Make me," Dick shot back.

Kori put a hand on Vic's arm. "Just ignore him. He’s only trying to get a rise out of you," she said. 

Vic grudgingly turned back around, but Dick didn't relent. "Gee. I guess I don't need to ask who wears the pants in the relationship, huh?"

Kori looked back at him, offended "Excuse me?"

"You two are dating, correct? You know, boyfriend and girlfriend? Lovers in the nighttime? Friends with benefits, maybe?"

Vic clenched his fists and stood up, marching over to Dick's table. "Leave her alone, man, or I'm gonna have to make you.” 

Dick held up his hands in mock surrender, getting up confidently despite the fact that Victor towered over him. By this point even Raven was watching.

"Hey, hey, I'm just trying to get to know my fellow prisoners, that's all," he said innocently. 

Vic smirked. "Well, if you want to keep your head attached to your neck, I'd recommend you find a new hobby." And with that, Victor turned and walked back to his seat, nodding politely when Kori mouthed a thank you.

Dick, however, didn’t sit back down. Instead, he walked around his table and jumped onto the librarian's desk, leering at Kori.

"So, princess, what dastardly deed did you do?” he asked.

Kori crossed her arms. "Excuse me?” 

Dick picked through a pencil holder before selecting one. He twirled it around in his fingers. "Wait, wait, let me guess. Caught making out with your boyfriend over here in the janitor's closet?"

Kori stayed silent, but that only fueled him more. "Or maybe it was someone else. I'll bet you have dozens of losers at your disposal for those lonely nights, don't you?"

Kori clenched her teeth. "Shut up," she growled.

"Make me.”

"If you don't knock it off _I'll_ make you," said Victor.

Dick glared. "You got a problem?"

"Yeah, it's four feet tall and smells like cheap hair gel," Vic shot back, grinning when Dick's face turned red and even Raven chuckled quietly. 

Dick broke the point off his pencil before tossing it behind his shoulder. "Quit the tough guy act, Sporto. Just because you're the quarterback doesn't mean you could take me. Probably couldn't take half the other people at this school." 

"And what would you know about that? You don't even count. In fact, you don't even exist at this school," Vic said. 

For barely a second emotion flashed on Dick's face, but he was quick to extinguish it. Instead, he feigned hurt and put a hand over his heart. "Ouch. That hurt so darn much.” He dropped the hand and gave Vic a deadpan look. 

Before things could get worse, they were interrupted by footsteps retreating down the hall. Wilson had left his office. Dick gave a wicked smile and hopped off the counter, bounding towards the door, all anger at Vic forgotten. 

Garfield bit his lip. If Dick got caught they would all get in trouble, and Steve would kill him if he got another detention. “Dude, uh, we're supposed to stay in our seats, so-"

Dick turned around, walking backwards toward the door. "Young man, have you finished your paper?” he bellowed in a voice eerily similar to Wilson’s deep baritone. 

When he made it to the door he reached up and fiddled with the hinge until he managed to loosen one of the screws. Pocketing the screw, he ran back to his desk as the door slammed shut, the sound echoing all through the quiet hallways. 

Wilson's footsteps abruptly halted before picking up again, running closer. 

Vic turned to Dick and stared wide-eyed. "This isn't funny, man. Put the screw back."

Dick shrugged innocently. "What screw?"

Wilson opened the door and marched in furiously. "Why is that door closed?” he demanded.

When no one answered, he turned to Raven. "Who closed that door?” he yelled again. Raven squeaked and hid her face behind her book.

At Wilson's bemused expression, Dick stage whispered with a hand next to his mouth, "She doesn't talk, sir."

Wilson scowled. "If I don't get an answer as to why that door is closed in the next five seconds you will _all_ be punished. Now who did it?"

"It just closed, Mr. Wilson," Kori insisted.

Dick held out his hands innocently. "The princess is right, Slade. Maybe a screw fell out. The world is an imperfect place."

Wilson laughed without humor. "You think you're so funny, don't Mr. Grayson?” Hand outstretched, “Give me the screw."

"I don't have it."

"Then where is it?"

“Maybe the same place your eye went, sir." Gar stifled a laugh behind his hand, and Raven cracked a smile. Mr. Wilson remained unamused.

"You, young man, have just earned yourself another detention."

"What can I say? I'm thrilled."

"Another."

Dick sat up in his chair, looking the principal in the eye behind his sunglasses. "I can't wait."

"Oh really? Fine then, another one.” 

"Good."

"There's one more. You want another?"

By now the other students were horrified, and Kori shook her head vigorously. "Dick, stop it," she chided. 

Dick glanced at her but remained steadfast. "You think I give a crap? I'll take as many detentions as you can dish out, bud."

Slade snapped his fingers in warning. "You watch that mouth. You just bought yourself two more."

Dick pouted. "Ooh, I'm not so sure about that. I might have to check my calender."

"Do it, because I've got you up to eight additional detentions, Grayson."

"Um, actually," Garfield interceded, "you only gave him seven, including the one at the beginning when he accused you of raiding Davy Jones' closet." He held up seven fingers, but Wilson shot him a look and he shrank back in his seat.

Wilson turned back to Dick and held up two fingers. "Two months. I've got you for two months, you little twerp. Maybe this will teach you that you're not the cool bad boy you think you are."

Dick clenched his teeth and muttered "Bite me," under his breath.

Wilson chuckled and took a step closer, making Dick subconsciously scoot back an inch in his seat. "You think you're so amusing, don't you? You have everyone else in this room wrapped around your finger, thinking you're some kind of god. Well you're not. You’re just a mangy little rat who will probably end up in prison before he's 18, and then you won't be my problem anymore."

He laughed again when Dick's hand shook, and he pulled back and strode back towards the door. "I hear any more shenanigans and I'm cracking skulls," he called over his shoulder. With that he exited the room, the loud slamming of the door deafening compared to the dead silence that followed.

Everyone looked at Dick, whose face was red with rage. When he saw everyone staring he flipped them off, and they got the message and turned back around. 

The clock struck 8:00. The next half hour was quiet as everyone found ways to entertain themselves.

Raven stuck her face back into her book, turning a page every few minutes. Gar tried balancing his pencil on his nose like a sea lion. Kori pulled her hair out of its tidy ponytail and began braiding it absently. Victor folded his paper into a paper football and flicked it into a trash can ten feet in front of him, cheering silently as it went in. Dick hummed a tune loudly, growing louder when he saw the irritated look Raven shot him. He went as far as to play an air guitar, banging his head as he sang out of tune.

By 9:00 Gar had fallen asleep with his head on his arms, which were folded atop his table. Kori was the second to succumb, followed by Vic. Dick passed out stretched across two chairs, and even Raven nodded off, her book falling to the floor.

Wilson walked back into the room, seeing the group of students fast asleep. 

"Hey, this isn't nap time. Wake up," he demanded.

No one moved.

Wilson sighed. "...Who needs to use the restroom?"

All five hands shot up in unison.

* * *

The bathroom break went by fairly quickly aside from Dick, who spent the next fifteen minutes carving swear words into the stalls with his pocket knife until he got bored.

* * *

It was now 10:00. 

Dick had wandered into the back of the library and began striding down the aisles, knocking down books one by one as he passed.

Gar watched, getting up from his seat and following behind him. "Y-you really shouldn't do that, dude. That's school property, you know, and the janitor will have to clean it all up, and-"

Dick turned around and stood over the smaller boy, just a few inches taller than he was. "One: Don't tell me what to do, kid. And two: You say 'dude' way too much, _dude.”_

By then Victor and Kori had joined them, but Raven stayed in her seat. She had put down her book though, and was watching the conversation carefully.

"Yo, lay off him, man," Vic warned.

Dick looked like he was about to argue, but didn't think it was worth his time and continued knocking over books. 

Vic rolled his eyes before sitting in one of the armchairs strewn around the library. Kori and Gar sat in adjacent chairs, Gar entertaining himself by drawing on his hand with a sharpie he found while the other two talked.

"So Kori, are you grounded tonight?” Victor asked.

Kori bit at her nails in thought. "I'm not sure. Why?"

"Garth’s having a pool party tonight. His parent are in Europe or something, so it's supposed to be pretty fun. Are you going?"

"Mm, I don't know. My parents say I'm grounded, but Komi told me to just blow them off. It's a whole thing." She waved her hand, as if that made it any easier to understand the situation. 

"Who's Komi?” Dick suddenly asked, reappearing from behind a bookshelf and holding a large novel in his hands.

Kori seemed surprised at his sudden interest, but answered nonetheless. "My sister."

"Hm. She look like you?"

"Why does that matter?"

Dick shrugged and began ripping pages out of the book, tossing them and letting them float down to the floor. "Just trying to figure out who's your parents' favorite," he answered, looking up again to see if that got a reaction out of her.

Kori narrowed her eyes, but figured it probably wasn’t worth starting an argument about. She looked down at her fingernails again. "I have a brother too, actually. Ry. I already know that Komi's the favorite, though." She paused and peered at Dick thoughtfully. "...Do you have any siblings?" She said it carefully, like she was testing a boundary.

Dick smiled down at the book he was currently destroying. "Four, kind of. Damian, Cass, Tim, and—and Jason." His voice got quieter at the end, and he trailed off in thought. He snapped back easily, though.

"Why do your parents like your sister better? Is she prettier or something?"

Kori crossed her arms and didn’t justify that with an answer. 

Dick had to admit he was...charmed by her stubbornness, but he could be stubborn too. "Bet they're jerks, right?"

At that Kori scoffed, rolling her eyes. "That would be an understatement," she muttered. 

Dick nodded. "I get that." He turned his gaze on Victor. "How about you, Sporto? What are your parents like? You guys get along?"

"If I said yes I would be an idiot, right?"

Dick ripped another page out with a flourish. "You’re an idiot no matter what you say. But if you say you get along with your parents, then that makes you a liar too." Another page.

Gar looked at the growing pile of papers on the floor. "Will you quit ripping that up? That's school property, you know."

Dick ripped out another page, dropping it directly in front of Gar's face. "My bad. It's so incredibly wrong to destroy such valuable literature. I'm sure it's _so_ fascinating to read...Mo-lay," he pronounced incorrectly, reading off the cover.

"Moliere," a small voice rang from behind him. Dick jumped and turned around to find Raven standing there, dark and silent. Nobody had noticed her come to join them. Raven blushed behind her hood at the sudden attention, and Gar grinned a little at the way she managed to startle Dick.

Dick smirked, dropping the book at her feet. "Once again, my bad.” He started back to his desk, pausing for a second to stare up at a structure by the back wall. 

In the back of the room there was a tall tower of sorts with a winding staircase circling around it. It was more or less ten feet tall, and had a moderately sized loft on top. It was rarely used and little more than a high platform with a carpeted floor and a few armchairs, about the size of a small bedroom. It was built with the library, originally intended to be a quiet place for students to read. Now, with the passage of time, students lost interest and it became more of an unnoticed decorative structure.

Dick tilted his head curiously and filed it away for future reference.

* * *

Eleven thirty, and Mr. Wilson once again returned. By then the five had already returned to their tables and were waiting patiently to hear whatever Wilson wanted to bother them with now.

He surveyed the scene, pleased to see that nobody had left their seats nor disobeyed his orders. "Okay, students, you have half an hour for lunch," he said, which was met by relieved smiles and happy sighs.

Dick raised a hand. "Excuse me, sir, but will milk be made available to us?” he asked sweetly.

Victor nodded in support. "I didn't bring a drink with me."

"I have very low tolerance for dehydration, Mr. Wilson," Kori added.

Wilson sighed, exasperated. "Okay, fine. There's a soda machine in the teachers' lounge."

Dick rose from his seat. "I'll go get it," he announced.

Wilson snapped his fingers and motioned for Dick to sit back down, a warning gleaming dangerously in his eyes. He did. "You're not going anywhere, Grayson." He looked around until his eyes landed on Garfield. "You," he said, pointing. Gar looked startled, but nodded. He wouldn't dare disobey a school official.

Wilson then pointed to Raven, snapping his fingers again. "And you. Girl. Some-someone get her,” he ordered when Raven paid no attention to him, too busy tuning out the world as usual.

Dick tossed a rolled up ball of paper in Raven's direction, hitting the front of her book. Her head snapped up in surprise.

"Miss Roth, you will accompany him," Mr. Wilson said. 

Raven glared at Garfield when she realized her task, but eventually stood up and followed him out of the library with a huff. 

The pair walked towards the teachers' lounge in silence for a while until Garfield cleared his throat.

"So," he squeaked. "H-how come you're here today?"

Raven didn't spare him more than a glance out of the corner of her eye.

After she didn't answer, Gar continued awkwardly, not discouraged despite her clearly not wanting to talk. "I mean, you don't really seem the type to get detention a lot," he pointed out.

"Neither do you."

Garfield jumped. Wow, she actually answered. It was the most he’d heard her speak all day.

"Um, that's probably true I guess." He scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably. They fell back into silence.

After turning a corner, Garfield's face lit up and he ran ahead, picking something shiny up off the floor. "Cool," he said. He opened his hand to reveal a penny sitting in the middle of his palm.

"'Spot a penny, pick it up, something something something... Good luck!’” he recited.

Raven stared unimpressed at the penny and back at his happy smile before rolling her eyes and resuming the walk to the lounge. Gar pocketed the penny before running to catch up to her, his curiosity peeking. He had to admit, he found her mysteriousness intriguing. 

"What's your name?" he asked.

Raven considered not answering, but she knew he wouldn't give up even if she didn't. "Raven."

A soft smile formed on Gar's lips. The name matched her perfectly. "That's pretty. I’m Garfield."

Raven didn't respond.

"Hey Rae, why are you so quiet?"

“Don't call me Rae. And you're being pretty invasive," she said.

“...Fair. I'll stop if you tell me why you're here," he offered.

Raven stopped walking, as did Garfield. She spun to face him. "Why are _you_ here?” she countered.

Garfield hesitated before leaning back against the wall and stuffing his hands in his pockets. "I, um, I'm a really good student and all, so my parents thought it would be good for me to learn from this experience so I don't do bad stuff in the future," he said, trying to sound convincing.

Raven crossed her arms. "That's a nice lie. Now how about you tell me why you're _really_ here?"

Gar looked at the floor and started walking again, faster than before. "Never mind. Forget it." 

Raven looked after him before eventually following at a distance, her mind filled to the brim with questions she knew she’d never ask.

* * *

It wasn't long before the two returned to the library with drinks in hand. Dick crowed from his table. “Thank God! I thought you would never make it back here. Wilson wouldn't let us eat until you guys got back."

Neither Garfield nor Raven responded, both dropping the cans on top of Kori and Vic's table and hurrying back to their seats.

Dick snatched two cans and tossed one to Raven, who caught it without looking away from her book.

Dick didn't have any lunch with him—he’d stopped relying on Alfred’s cooking months ago; he didn’t want to need Bruce to provide for him his whole life—so he settled on watching the others eat. 

Raven's lunch was simple: an apple and a turkey sandwich. She ate silently while she read her book, completely ignoring everyone else around her. Dick didn't find that too interesting, so he diverted his attention elsewhere.

He got up and walked over to Kori and Vic's table, pulling up a chair and plopping down next to Kori, just slightly too close for comfort. "Hey princ—What the heck is that?” he asked with disgust, pointing at her lunch, if you could even call it that.

Kori had brought what looked like a sandwich, except that it had the most bizarre ingredients one could imagine. There was salami, relish, mashed potatoes, tomato sauce, sardines, and what looked to be globs of vanilla pudding. As if that wasn't enough, Kori had apparently also brought a bottle of mustard, with which she proceeded to squirt unholy amounts of mustard onto her already nauseating lunch.

"It's a sandwich," Kori replied before taking a bite, licking her lips and chewing happily.

Dick shook his head slowly, pretending to gag. "I would call it vomit, but that sounds too nice. I’m gonna be blunt with you here, princess. That is the single grossest thing I've ever seen in my whole life, and trust me, that's saying something.” 

Kori glared. "Can I please just eat?"

Dick put his hands up. “I don't know, but by all means, give it a try." He looked over to see what Victor had packed, and his mouth dropped open in shock.

From a large brown paper bag, Victor pulled out two sandwiches, a bag of chips, a banana, a package of cookies, three muffins, and somehow an entire steak. He unwrapped one of his sandwiches, looking up when he noticed everyone staring at him.

"What?"

The others turned away, not even commenting.

Dick got up from his place at the table and approached Gar. He sat next to him and snatched his green lunchbox from his hands. "What are we having for lunch today?” he asked with fake sweetness dripping from his voice. 

Gar gestured passively to his lunchbox, which Dick opened and started rummaging through. "Let's see what we got here. Celery sticks, an apple, a peanut butter and jelly with the crusts cut off, and—“ He pulled out something white and squishy in a ziploc bag. "What the hell is this supposed to be?"

"Uh, that's tofu," Gar answered.

Dick dropped it on the table like it was a hot iron. "Tofu? Are you kidding me? You actually eat this crap?"

Garfield shrugged. "Yeah, I'm a vegan. I love tofu."

"As if you couldn't get any lamer,” Dick huffed. He folded his hands on the table and spoke in his best impression of a critic. “Well, besides the white blob you call food, this is a well-balanced meal you've got here. All of the food groups are represented. What an _excellent_ mother you must have."

"Rita? Yeah, I guess. What are you having?” Gar looked around, but he couldn't see anything at Dick's table.

Dick stood up and rubbed Gar's head as he passed. "Not all of us have doting mothers, kid."

Garfield furrowed his brows. Wait a minute. Didn't the Waynes have a butler? There must have been someone to pack him something, or at the very least Dick should have been able to prepare his own. Or...Maybe he just refused to rely on his family anymore and simply chose not to bring a lunch? Gar had heard so many stories about Dick Grayson, the black sheep of the Wayne family. According to the socialites Steve and Rita always talked to, Dick barely even talked to his father anymore even though he still lived at home. Gar thought about asking, but decided it would be better not to pry. Dick’s life was his own business. 

Frowning, Victor plucked one of his muffins from the table and tossed it over his shoulder to Dick, who caught it with one hand before taking a bite. "Thanks, man."

Vic nodded and returned to his own lunch.

Staring at Vic, Dick called, "You got enough food there, Sporto, or is there a dump truck bringing the rest of it?" Kori and Gar laughed at that, while Vic rolled his eyes.

"I play football, man. I have a big appetite. And my dad keeps telling me I need to beef up if I'm gonna get better."

Dick guffawed. "Your dad turned you into a bottomless pit? Ha." He stood up, dropping his half eaten muffin back on the table. "Here's what life is like at Victor Stone's house:" he announced.

He pulled on a happy face. "Hey, son! How was school?” he asked loudly in a deep voice.

He turned to the right and answered with his hands on his cheeks, "Great, Dad! Today I made the biggest touchdown in the whole world!" He turned to the left again.

"That's swell, son! How's about we go to a football game this weekend?"

"I can't, I have practice," he answered again, faking disappointment.

"That's all right, you can do it in the car!" He turned to the right again, pulling on a smile.

"Gee! I love you, Dad!"

"I love you too, son!" He wrapped his arms around himself, mimicking a hug, before his face turned sour and he dropped his arms. He bowed and started back to his table.

Victor glared. In actuality that wasn't anywhere close to his family, but he didn't correct him. "Okay, fine. Then what's your family like?” he challenged. 

Dick smiled, showing his teeth. "I thought you'd never ask." He pulled on a stern face and pointed.

"You'll never amount to anything if you keep wasting your life like this," he bellowed in a stern voice. He turned and crossed his arms.

"Maybe you should stop telling me what to do, Bruce," he answered in his own voice. 

"I'm your father, young man, and I'll stop telling you what to do when you get your head on straight."

"You're not my father, you're just some rich guy who needs to take in kids because no one else likes him," he countered. He turned again.

"I'm warning you, young man! Do you want to end up like Jason?!"

His eyes grew wide and his face turned red. "F*CK YOU!” he roared, punching the air that resembled Bruce's face. He scowled and bowed again at the end of his performance. The others were silent, and Kori especially looked horrified.

"Who's Jason?” she asked, her eyes wide.

Dick's face turned into a mixture of anger and sorrow, but luckily his sunglasses still hid his eyes. "...My brother," was all he said. Everyone in the room knew what he was implying, so they wisely didn’t ask him to elaborate. 

But Victor couldn’t help himself. He was skeptical, sue him. Everything else that came out of Grayson’s mouth was a lie anyway. “What happened to him?"

Dick clenched his fists, preparing to either curse him out or maybe yell, but instead his mouth answered without him meaning it to. "He got killed in a gang fight five months back. Bruce's been a stubborn ass ever since." He turned his glare on Vic with his nostrils flared. "Did I stutter?"

He started walking away towards the back of the library, calling over his shoulder, "I don't need to hang out with you losers anymore." And with that he ran to the "tower" and jumped up, grabbing a railing with one hand and swinging himself up, doing a flip up the side. He disappeared into the loft, and seconds later everyone heard his muffled roar of fury. 

Kori looked at Victor during the silence that followed. "You shouldn't have asked, you know," she said.

Vic nodded, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "Yeah, yeah, I know."

* * *

12:00, and Dick still hadn't returned from his perch.

Gar got bored of sitting in silence, so he turned around and got Raven's attention. "What are you reading, Rae?"

"Dont call me that." But she held up the book so Gar could read the cover.

"'A Tale of Two Cities'," he read. "Good book. Have you read it before?"

Raven closed the book and placed it on the table, narrowing her eyes behind her hood. "Why are you asking so many questions?” she demanded.

Garfield shrugged. "Just making conversation. I like having friends for once, I guess."

Raven was about to respond, but Victor beat her to the punch. "We're not friends, little dude. We all just happen to be stuck in detention together. Nothing more."

Garfield's face fell and he looked down at his table. "Oh. Okay, I got it," he said dejectedly. 

At that moment Dick jumped down from his tower and bounded to the front of the room. "Come on, guys. We're getting out of here," he ordered. And with that he left without looking back to see if anyone was following him. Well if that wasn’t the biggest turnaround ever, they didn’t know what was. 

The others hesitated, looking back and forth at each other in question. They were cautious, but at the same time, anything Dick was planning had to be more entertaining than just sitting in silence for the rest of the day. Gar was the first to leave, and Kori soon followed. That left Vic and Raven, who stared at each other wordlessly as if daring the other to move first. 

Vic told himself not to do it. Anything Grayson was planning would no doubt get them all in trouble. But despite knowing this, Vic was nothing if not a team player, and his instinct to follow overcame his common sense. Cursing, he finally stood up and followed them out, and Raven followed suit.

The four caught up with Dick down the hallway, who peered around a corner in search of Wilson.

"Grayson, where are we going?” Victor whispered. Dick shushed him and silently jogged down the hall, the others following him closely.

"We're heading to my locker," he answered quietly, flashing them a grin. 

The group went down a few more hallways until they reached a locker covered in threats for anyone who opens it and several swear words carved into the metal. Obviously Dick's locker. He banged a few times on the dented door until it swung open, revealing crumpled up papers, several pairs of sunglasses, and various other things that they doubted were allowed on school grounds.

“You really keep your locker like this?” Kori asked. 

“Sorry, my maid’s on vacation this week.” 

Dick reached for a paper bag on the bottom shelf and pulled out a dozen dangerous-looking throwing knives. He grinned and pocketed them carefully, meeting the others' disbelieving looks. “What?"

Vic threw his hands up and whisper-yelled, "You dragged us all out into the hallway and risked getting caught for some freaking knives? Are you kidding me?"

Dick shrugged and started walking back to the library. "Maybe I just wanted a field trip," he said innocently. Vic and Kori followed him with Vic fuming silently, but Gar and Raven hung back. He turned to her in shock.

"Weapons. He has _actual weapons_ with him." He shook his head. "Do you approve of this?” 

Raven shrugged and walked past him, snatching the lock off Dick's locker as she did so. Gar sighed and jogged to keep up.

Dick turned a corner but immediately backed up again, holding out a hand palm-out toward the others. "Go back, go back! It's Wilson!" He peeked around again and saw that Wilson was now walking in their direction. Luckily, he hadn’t spotted them yet, but that could easily change if they didn’t book it. _Fast._ Dick turned around and ran back the way they came, the others close on his heels. 

They sprinted through the hallways, backtracking and making sharp turns whenever they saw Wilson coming their way. It seemed like they would never be able to escape him, and inwardly Victor especially was freaking out. If they got caught they were all going to be completely screwed.

Dick led them down a hallway. "We'll go through the cafeteria and cut him off there," he said. 

Vic skidded to a stop, pointing in the opposite direction. "No, no, the activities hall. It's faster."

He and Dick stared each other down, with each passing second putting them a step closer to getting busted. The principal's footsteps grew ominously louder, heading right for them. Too determined to waste time arguing, Vic took off in the direction of the activities hall with Kori and Garfield. Raven hung back with Dick, who looked conflicted.

Raven made a disgruntled noise and gestured towards the others, urging him to follow. Dick exhaled loudly and grudgingly caught up to them, Raven close behind. Unfortunately, when they reached the activities hall, they discovered that the doors were locked, and Wilson was approaching fast. They were trapped.

Vic cursed. "That's it, game over. We’re screwed."

Dick shook his head. "No, just me. Go!" And with that, he ran off towards Wilson, singing their school's fight song at the top of his lungs. The others watched him with confusion on their faces, but recovered quickly and did as he ordered. Except for Kori, that is. She hesitated, watching Dick in his somewhat heroic efforts to help them. 

Until now she’d assumed he’d sell them out in a heartbeat if it meant saving his own skin. But maybe...Maybe she’d misjudged him? Maybe he wasn’t as selfish as she thought he was. 

“Kori, come on!” Vic yelled. 

Or maybe it was just wishful thinking. 

Sparing one last glance as Dick disappeared around a corner, Kori spun and followed the other three.

* * *

If he’d been in any other situation, Dick may have enjoyed getting the opportunity to piss off Wilson. But he knew he’d really get it this time. Still, he didn’t regret his decision to sacrifice himself for the others. Why? He...He had no idea. At the time, it had been obvious that the best thing to do was provide a distraction so the others could get back to the library. 

Along with his boots thudding against the linoleum, he heard a voice in his head asking _Why the hell would you volunteer to get into trouble to save those assholes?_

He’d have to revisit the topic when he wasn’t busy trying to outrun the warden. 

Dick ran towards the gymnasium, singing as loudly as he could. "T-E-A-M T-I-T-A-N-S TEAM TITANS! LET'S GO! T-E-A-M T-I-T-A-N-S TEAM TITANS! LET'S GO!"

He made it to the gym, smiling wryly when he saw the pull up bar. He jumped up, grabbing the bar and hoisting himself up. He swung around for a while and was pleased to catch sight of Wilson running into the gym. He looked winded and had to brace his hands on his knees to catch his breath. Stupid old man. 

Dick practiced a few moves before doing one final hand spring off the bar, performing a perfect quadruple flip in the air. He’s still got it. 

He whooped when he stuck the landing, throwing his hands in the air dramatically. "Ladies and gentlemen, the Flying Graysons!” he shouted like a ringmaster. He smiled brightly at Wilson, whose face was sour. 

"What in the _hell_ do you think you're doing, Mister Grayson?” he demanded in a booming voice that echoed off the gym floor. 

Dick shrugged. "What does it look like? I'm training for a gymnastics scholarship." He took immense pleasure in watching Wilson's face redden, especially when a vein bulged in his forehead. The only time he’d ever seen that vein was when he did something _really_ bad. It was his speciality, if he did say so himself. 

"That's it, young man. You're finished wreaking havoc around this institution." He grabbed Dick by the collar, pulling him out of the gym and marching him back to the library.

Wilson threw the door open with a bang and shoved Dick roughly into the room. The others had already returned to their seats by then and watched silently as Dick sauntered over to his table, grabbing his belongings.

"I regret to inform you all that you will be without Mister Grayson's services for the remainder of the day," Wilson said.

Dick rolled his eyes. "Oh no, I'm weeping.” 

"Watch it, punk. You think you're so great, don't you? Well news flash: You’re not." He turned his attention to the other students. "You all think he's so amusing now? Try visiting him at the dumpster he lives in in five years and see how great he is then."

Grabbing Dick's arm, he dragged him towards the door. Dick slapped the hand away. "Get your hands off me. I expected better behavior from you, _Slade,"_ he hissed.

The pair exited the library, but not before Dick kicked over a trash can, sending it flying a few feet away and scattering its contents. One last hurrah. 

Wilson led him over to the janitor's closet down the hall. He threw him in and slammed the door behind them. Dick plopped unmannerly onto a stack of boxes, glaring at the principal in defiance.

Wilson stood over Dick, visibly _seething_ with anger. "This is the last time you make me look bad in front of those sheep," he growled. "You think you're some kind of god to these students just because you like to question authority? Well just you wait. Graduation is coming faster than you think, and when every single person besides you is going up to receive their diploma, you'll see that you're _nothing_ outside of these halls. When you're stuck living in a dumpster like some deadbeat, you'll realize that not a _single one_ of your followers will remember you. So don’t you _dare_ think you have any right to disrespect my authority, because you don’t. I refuse to be made a fool of by some _circus rat_ who was only adopted out of pity and has no _business_ trying to prove he’s anything more,” he spat, getting so close to Dick’s face he could see the blood vessels in his eyes. 

Dick's face paled and his eyes widened behind his glasses. They began to burn with unshed tears, but he steeled his jaw. He wouldn't dare let them fall. Not in front of Wilson. He _won't_ show weakness.

Wilson smirked. "What, did I hit a sore spot? Good. Maybe you should stop being such a thug and start actually doing something with your life besides picking fights and throwing dirt all over the Wayne family name. I swear to god, the second you either drop out or get expelled I'm gonna be coming for you. I’ll show you what happens to children who think they can show insubordination to their superiors. I'm going to kick your pathetic little ass," he growled. He pulled away, a cruel smirk on his face. 

This was the side of the principal students never saw. No one except for Dick ever infuriated him enough to see it. 

Dick pulled his knees up to his chest, suppressing a shiver. His face remained stoic though, with his glasses thankfully preventing Wilson from seeing how red his eyes had become or the wetness that pricked at the corners.

Curling his lips into a satisfied smile, Wilson opened the door and left Dick alone in the dark closet. The lock clicked behind him. 

Dick sat there curled in on himself, a single tear slipping from his eye. And in the silence of the small closet, quiet sobs went unheard by anybody who would care enough to listen.

* * *

The clock on the wall struck 1:30, and the remaining four students sat quietly at their tables. Kori's green eyes kept darting frantically to the door. “Do you think he's alright?” she wondered aloud.

Vic shrugged. "Ah, he'll be fine. Serves the guy right, anyway. He's the one who keeps messing with Wilson after all," he retorted, but his heart wasn't in it. It was getting harder and harder to hate Grayson as much as he had this morning.

"Stop it," Gar said. "We have no idea what he goes through. You all saw how harsh Mr. Wilson was, and I can only imagine how his family life must be."

Kori cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean?"

"I mean he has it rough. You know he's the son of Bruce Wayne, right?"

Their jaws dropped in shock. "Hold up," Vic said. "You mean to tell me that _that guy_ is the son of a billionaire? I didn't even know Bruce Wayne had kids," he marveled. 

"Not all of them are his actual kids," Gar told him. "I think the youngest is his, but the rest are all adopted. You guys all really didn't know? Grayson was the first after his parents were murdered and—“ 

"His parents were murdered?” Kori gasped. 

Gar's face fell and he nodded. "Yeah. He and his family were these famous acrobats in the circus. Their trapeze was sabotaged or something and his mom and dad fell to their deaths right in front of him. If that doesn’t mess someone up, I don’t know what does.” Sympathy rang in his voice. He personally knew how that felt. “Anyways, then Wayne adopted him and a bunch of other kids. I don't think he's around that often, though." 

Garfield didn’t feel great telling them all about Dick’s personal stuff, but he knew from experience that being judged for not being good enough hurts. That’s why Terra dumped him, after all, and he wouldn’t wish it on anyone. He owed it to the guy to let them all know he wasn’t just an obnoxious dick—pun intended. 

Vic shook his head slowly, his eyes wide. "How do you know about all this, man?"

Gar averted his eyes. "Uh, my foster parents are pretty wealthy. They know Wayne, so..." 

Raven looked like she was about to say something, but that was when a deafening crash sounded from behind them. They all jumped at the sudden noise—Kori almost fell out of her chair. 

They all looked towards the back of the library, and there lay Dick, who had fallen from a vent in the ceiling and crashed into some book racks on the way down. 

He hopped up and brushed himself off to discover everyone staring at him. "Hey, guys!” he greeted them cheerfully. "Got kinda stuffy in that old closet, so I figured it'd be more fun in here."

He walked back to the tables, stopping by Victor and Kori's. "Hey, Kori. Did you miss me?"

He grinned at her, and she for some reason couldn't help but feel the corners of her mouth twitch as well. 

Before anyone could really enjoy this happy reunion, the sound of the door opening met their ears. Dick cursed and quickly ducked under the table before Wilson could spot him and chew him out for escaping the closet.

Wilson marched in furiously. "What was that ruckus?” he demanded. 

No one answered. Dick might not be the nicest guy in the world, but they still didn't want to let him get caught. _Again._ They knew how cruel Wilson could be, so there was an unspoken vow of sorts to not turn him in. 

Wilson clenched his jaw and put his hands on his hips, surveying the silent teenagers before him. "I said, what was that ruckus?"

Vic shrugged innocently. "What ruckus? I didn't hear anything."

Dick snickered silently under the table. He knew they wouldn't give him up. As much as he hated to admit it, he almost trusted these people. He made not a sound, trying to keep himself from laughing at Wilson's frustration.

His eyes wandered in the darkness under the table, and he found himself shamelessly staring at Kori's legs, which were exposed under her knee-length skirt. They were lean and tan, and he found himself unable to look away no matter how hard he tried. That is, until he something shiny glimmered in the corner of his eye.

Dick's eyebrows lifted as he saw the shine of something metal on Victor's leg. Just below where his jeans cut off, where normal skin should be, his leg looked silver like a piece of metal. _What the hell?_ He leaned in a little closer and discovered that Vic's leg was in fact made of metal.

Gar raised a timid hand. "Can you describe the ruckus, sir?"

Dick inspected the leg some more, surprisingly interested in the technology before him. He’s never seen a robot leg before, okay? Especially not one like this. It looked _nothing_ like a normal prosthesis at all. Without really thinking, Dick grabbed the ankle and inspected it closer.

Wilson asked again what the ruckus was, but he was interrupted in the middle of his sentence by a loud squeak from Victor. Everyone stared at the athlete, watching his face lose its color and his mouth drop open.

Kori was confused at first until she glanced under the table, seeing Dick fiddling with Vic's leg. She kicked him, making him grunt. He still didn’t let go, though. He had priorities. Now, he normally wasn't too much of a tech guy, but this was still pretty wicked. Even cooler than that mechanical egg cracker Tim made once in fifth grade. 

Kori kicked him again, and he elbowed her back in the leg while grumbling a swear.

To cover up the sounds Dick was making, Kori faked a coughing fit, and everyone followed suit except for Vic, who was still speechless. Loud hacking coughs efficiently covered up all noise from under Vic and Kori's table.

"Was that the sound you heard?” she asked Wilson, who looked suspicious. He clearly knew they were hiding something, but it was obvious not one of them was going to crack.

He frowned and narrowed his eyes accusingly. "I don't know what's going on here, but if I hear so much as a _peep_ from another one of you for the rest of the day you're _all_ getting another detention." With one final glare he left, muttering something about early retirement under his breath.

Dick crawled out from underneath the table, Victor punching him repeatedly as he did. Vic was obviously pissed, and his face still retained some redness. "What the hell was that?” he yelled, giving Dick one last hard punch on the arm.

Dick remained unfazed. In fact, he even looked a little excited, like a child who just discovered videogames. "Hey, did you guys know that Sporto over here has a robot leg?” he asked excitedly, jabbing a thumb towards Victor's leg.

Gar's face lit up. "Seriously? That's so cool! Can I see?"

Dick laughed, while Victor glared. "One: No, you _can't_ see it. And two: It's not a robot leg," he said. 

Dick shrugged. "I don't know, man. Looked a lot like a robot leg to me. Seems like we have a cyborg in our midst, huh?" He chuckled, slapping Vic on the shoulder. 

Vic remained unamused. 

"Jeez, I'm just teasing, dude, chill. Seriously though, what's up with that? You've got some awesome tech in that leg of yours."

Vic narrowed his eyes, intent on keeping silent. It was none of their business, after all. And to be quite honest, he didn’t really like talking about the accident. It made him feel weird. Whenever someone heard the story, from that point on they only ever looked at him with pity. Karen was a little better with it, but still. Telling people only made him relive the accident all over again, and he’d much rather not do that. 

However, he could feel the burn of everyone's eyes locked on him and knew they wouldn't give up until they got an answer. "Okay, fine. I have a prosthetic leg, happy?"

"What happened?" Surprisingly enough it was Raven who asked, but she remained unfazed by the looks she got. After the few times she'd commented on their conversations thus far, they shouldn’t still look so spooked to hear her voice.

Vic slouched a little on his seat, staring intensely at the table in front of him. "It was just an accident," he muttered.

Dick waited for him to continue, but grew discouraged when he didn't. "Not good enough, tin man. We want details. Was it a gross bloody mess? Did your leg get chewed off by zombies?” he joked, trying to lighten the mood a bit. Not for Vic's sake, of course. He just really wanted some story time. 

Vic threw a crumpled piece of paper at Dick, hitting him on the shoulder. A smirk tugged at his lips though, and he elaborated on his story.

"Fine, but you asked for it.” He took a breath. “It was a little over a year ago, I think. I was driving drunk from a keg party—trying to impress my old man with my rebellion or whatever, I still don't really know—and wrapped my car around a telephone pole. The car and I were both totalled. My leg was all mangled so they just cut it off, but I got a prosthetic for it. My parents are both scientists who work a lot with machines and stuff, so they designed the leg so I’d be able to control it and still play football. It lets me play as good as I did before, which my dad was happy about. But the damage was still pretty bad. There was also some damage to a few organs and stuff, so some of those are artificial too. And the bone in my left arm is metal too, but you can't see that. Tell you the truth, my body’s about 30% metal at this point.” Vic spoke just loud enough so they could hear him, but it was enough. 

He looked up, unsurprised by the horrified expressions he received. That was how everyone looked when they found out for the first time. The only one who didn’t looked freaked out was Garfield, who oddly looked like he was trying his hardest not to smile. It was a battle he lost, and he fell into a fit of giggles.

"What's your deal?” Vic asked.

Gar laughed again, the sound high pitched and squeaky. "Dude! Do you even get how awesome that is? You're like a cyborg," he giggled.

Vic stared at him for a long time, his lips twitching after a minute or so. After that he chuckled in resignation. "You're a weird little dude, you know that?"

Gar shrugged and kept smiling that toothy grin. "So can your leg shoot lasers and stuff? Ooh ooh, does it give you super fast speed? Does it climb walls?" The bunch rolled their eyes at his childlike excitement, but Vic was secretly relieved. Gar didn't cringe or divert his attention away awkwardly like everyone else. He didn't tiptoe around the subject like most people did, and Vic was grateful for that. 

In fact, the others seemed to have gotten over their initial shock as well. There were no questions about how disabling it was. So _Aw, I’m so sorry_ s or _You’re so lucky you survived_ s. Nobody in here pitied him or was made uncomfortable by his disability, which was...nice. 

While Gar kept bombarding Vic with questions—“If you kicked a building, would it collapse?”—Dick wandered off to the back of the library. He didn’t feel right sticking around after hearing Victor’s story. He’d assumed it would be something like _I accidentally chopped it off cutting down a Christmas tree_ or _I tripped and broke it really bad_. Not...that. If he’d known it was some huge traumatic tragedy, he never would have pressed so hard. 

So he figured it was best to keep some distance for a while and not think about the fact that it turns out they have something in common after all—pain. 

He pulled out one of his knives and tossed it a couple times in the air, catching it with perfect skill. He began flinging them at the wall, aiming for flyers and posters taped there. Each one hit dead center with amazing accuracy. 

Besides the trapeze, this was one of his favorite acts back at the circus. Of course he was never allowed to perform it himself, but he couldn’t help learning a few things. 

"Impressive," a voice commented. Dick turned around to find Kori leaning against the tower behind him. He hadn't even noticed she'd left her table.

Kori was inwardly pleased that she managed to catch him off guard, and she watched with intrigue as he went back to his knife throwing. "Where did you learn that?” she asked. He'd switched from aiming at flyers to targeting wads of gum that had been carelessly stuck onto the wall. He still didn't miss a single shot. 

Dick didn't look back at Kori when he answered. "At the circus," he said, punctuating it with another throw. He didn't elaborate.

"Garfield told us about that. He said you used to be an acrobat?"

Dick paused before throwing another, though there was more force behind it than the previous times. "Yup. I was, once."

Kori clasped her hands together and wrung them uncertainly, debating with herself whether she should just leave him alone. She didn't have to wonder long, because Dick spoke again.

"What are you?" He let the question hang in the air. 

"What do you mean?"

"I mean," he began, turning around, "what are you? You're make it seem like you’re better than everyone else at this garbage school, but then you say you're not as good as your sister. And to me you seem both too weird and too normal to be here. So what are you?"

Kori was taken aback by his bluntness, but then again, what exactly was a polite way to ask such an obscure question? "...I don't know," she finally answered.

She looked down at her shoes, avoiding Dick's prodding eyes. Or at least, not until she saw something silver fly at her face and hit the wall an inch away from her ear. She flinched and turned, realizing it was a knife. She gasped, staring at Dick in shock.

"Hey! You could have hit me!” 

Dick shrugged and walked closer to her until they were inches apart. "Nah, I never miss," he said. Though his sunglasses concealed his eyes, she could tell they were locked on her own. He didn't look away from her as he reached out a hand to pull the knife out of the wall. He stuck it in his back pocket and continued to stare at her.

"You still haven't answered my question," he pointed out.

Kori crossed her arms. He was awfully pushy, but so was she. "How about you answer one of mine?"

Dick lifted his eyebrows, encouraging her to proceed. Kori considered asking about his past at the circus or the Wayne family, but at the last moment she chickened out. Instead, she selected a far less personal one.

"Why are you here today?" she asked.

Dick laughed. His breath was warm on her face. "You do realize I'm one of the worst people in this school, right? What makes you surprised to see me here?" 

"You still haven't answered my question," she quoted him, lifting an eyebrow in challenge.

Dick couldn’t suppress his smile. Maybe he was wrong about Kori. He’d assumed from the beginning that she was just another one of the rude popular girls that infested the school like mosquitos—sucking blood and spreading poison. He’d expected her to be just as vicious as the rest of them, but now...Now he wasn’t so sure. 

He pushed off the wall, taking a step back. He crossed the room to the wall where his knives stuck out like porcupine quills. "Some kid was getting picked on," he explained over his shoulder.

"He was a freshman. Couldn't be more than 5'3 and super nerdy. Like, chess club and plays board games in his basement nerdy. Easy prey to this jackass of a jock who beat him up by the dumpsters behind the school. Now I’ve got no problems with a good fight, but not when it’s with someone who can’t defend themselves.” He shrugged. “So I helped him out."

Kori was...confused to say the least. She'd expected his offense to be something like cursing out a teacher or setting a desk on fire. Definitely not something as selfless as saving a kid from a bully.

"Anyway," Dick continued, yanking the blades one by one from the wall and pocketing them. "I decided to step in and teach him a lesson.” 

He caught Kori’s nervous expression and laughed. “Don’t worry, I didn’t kill him or anything,” he assured her. “Just taught him what happens when you pick on people who don’t deserve it. Besides, it was barely a few bruises at first. Nothing compared to what I _could_ do." He turned around then, looking at Kori and clenching his teeth. The easygoing attitude he'd been expressing just seconds ago was long gone, replaced by anger. "Then he called me a _circus brat,"_ he spat, as if it were an expletive.

"By the time I was finished with that son of a bitch his nose was broken in at least two places and his shoulder was dislocated. Guy cried like a baby," he chuckled. Like a flame being smothered, his anger dissipated and he looked rather satisfied with himself at the memory. In the back of her mind, Kori wondered if he was bipolar or something. All these mood swings were giving her whiplash. 

"How about you?" Dick asked. "What could you possibly do that was horrible enough to warrant _detention?"_ He said _detention_ in a deep voice like you’d hear in a horror movie. 

Kori bit her lip before changing the subject. "Could you teach me?” she asked, pointing to the knife still in Dick's hand.

Dick smiled.

* * *

Vic and Gar were talking on one of the couches, laughing like old friends as if they hadn't only met this morning. They had apparently really warmed up to each other. "What's your middle name?” Vic was asking.

A monotone voice not belonging to Garfield answered for him. "Your middle name is Mark." The boys looked up and saw Raven striding up to the couch Gar was sitting on and taking a seat.

"You're also fourteen years old, you're five feet tall and 150 pounds, and your social security number is 47294-"

"Hey, wait," Garfield stopped her before she could reveal anything else. "How do you know all this stuff? Are you psychic or something?"

Raven smiled mischievously. "Nope." She pulled a green leather wallet from behind her back, brandishing it like a token. "I stole your wallet."

Gar scowled and reached for his wallet, snatching it from her hand. "Great, so you're a thief," he muttered.

Raven rolled her eyes. "It's not like there's anything in there to steal besides twenty dollars and some pokemon cards."

Vic laughed at that, while Gar's ears reddened.

Garfield pouted, focusing the attention on Raven instead. "I thought you were reading your book."

"Finished it," she replied.

"Fine, then." Gar made a grab for her purse, taking the large black bag before she could stop him. "If you get to play with my stuff, then I get to play with yours." He smiled triumphantly as he started rummaging around in the purse, frowning after a while.

"What the heck? All you have in here is junk," he complained. He'd expected to find cool stuff like money or some taxidermy birds or something fun like that. Not a bunch of eyeliner pencils, tampons, shopping receipts, and more empty water bottles than was probably considered normal.

Raven narrowed her eyes and hit him upside the head, making him shout. "Maybe I like having junk in my bag," she said. "You never know when you have to take off with only the stuff on your back."

Vic eyed her curiously. "You mean like run away? What would make you need to run away?” he asked.

"My home life is... _unsatisfying,"_ she said, her eyes flicking between Gar and Vic.

Victor scoffed. "Well, everyone's home life is unsatisfying. That shouldn't make you feel the need to pack everything you have in your purse in case you need to escape. That's just crazy."

Fire burned behind Raven's eyes. "Why can't I? I could go anywhere in the world. Tokyo, Russia, Markovia, Azarath. I could go wherever I want to go. Be whomever I want to be."

Gar scratched the back of his ear. "What's so bad about your home life that you would go to another country just to get away from it?” 

Raven didn't expect the concern that shone in his eyes, but still she refused to answer. She packed everything back into her bag and stood up. "Never mind. Just leave me alone,” she muttered. She walked away, going deep into the library among the aisles. 

Garfield didn't hesitate before following. He caught up in the World History section, grabbing her arm and making her turn around. "Wait, hold up, Rae—“ 

"Stop calling me Rae!” she snapped. Garfield flinched at the outburst. Raven closed her eyes and took a breath to calm herself before speaking again in a quieter tone. "Listen, just leave me alone, okay?” 

Garfield shook his head. "I mean, I will if you really want me to, but I don’t think you do. You wouldn't have told us all that stuff if you didn't want to talk about it, right? So talk."

Raven glared, but didn’t walk away this time, which he hoped meant he was right. Still, she didn’t answer. So Garfield took a guess.

"Is it your parents?"

Raven blinked. She didn't expect him to get it right on his first try. Was it that obvious, or did he just recognize what that was like? Wordlessly, she nodded.

"...Is it bad? Really bad?"

Another nod. 

Raven didn’t know why she hadn’t walked away already. For some bizarre reason, she almost trusted Garfield. She would probably laugh all about it later when she looked back and realized how dumb it was to reveal her truths to some random guy in detention, but right now, she didn’t feel that way. That was strange, especially for her.

"It's my dad," she clarified, her voice no more than a breath. At just the thought of her father Raven grimaced, remembering the sting from the slap she'd gotten when she had to tell him she was going to detention this morning.

Garfield's eyes glistened. He knew what it was like having a bad father. "What does he do to you?" He was whispering now, like they were sharing top secret information. It was like they were in an intimate little bubble, far away from the world and its problems.

She hesitated, swallowing thickly. "...He hits me."

Garfield bit his lip, and Raven sighed before dropping her hood for the first time. 

Two things caught Gar’s attention. 

The first was that Raven’s eyes, oddly enough, were violet. Gar had never seen anyone with violet eyes before, and it was such a beautifully strange detail it almost made sense they were Raven’s. 

But what really captured Garfield's attention was the dark bruise on her cheek, which added an unfortunate splash of color to Raven's pale complexion. Gar was furious at the sight. 

Slowly he reached up with one hand and brushed the bruise with his fingertips, rage burning within him. 

Raven continued in a monotone, emotionless. "He's been beating me ever since my mom left when I was seven. He's like—like a demon, always telling me I'm worthless and that I'm nothing without him. And the thing is he's right. Nobody cares about me. It's like I could disappear tomorrow and nobody would care." Her eyes were glassy. 

Gar chewed his lip, his eyes glistening as well. “I would care," he said. “You think you're alone, Raven, but you're not."

Raven let out a shuddering breath. Her whole life, not a single person had ever told Raven that they cared—not a single one. Everyone found her too creepy and depressing to talk to, and she didn’t blame them. But now, for some miraculous reason, Garfield cared about her. 

Without really thinking about it Raven threw her arms around Gar, hugging him tightly and pressing her face into his shoulder. Gar froze at first, but then he relaxed and even wrapped his own arms around her as well. A reassurance that there was someone who cared.

* * *

2:00, and all five were seated in what Dick affectionately dubbed the Tower. They sat on the carpeted floor in a circle: Dick, Kori, Gar, Vic, and Raven in that order. They were sprawled out a few feet apart from each other. It was a little cramped, but in a good way. Like a small private bubble of their own. 

Dick balanced a pencil on his finger, Raven read from a new book with her hood back up again, Vic drummed a beat on his knees with his hands, Kori braided her hair, and Gar seemed to be in intense thought. After a while of comfortable silence, Gar looked up.

"Hey Vic, truth or dare?"

Vic rolled his eyes. "Are you seriously trying to start a game of truth or dare? What are you, four?"

"Just answer the question."

"Fine. Uh, truth," he said.

"Would you walk to school naked for a million dollars?"

Vic laughed. "Yup. Heck, I'd walk across Antarctica naked for just a thousand, let alone a million." He looked around the circle. "Kori, truth or dare?"

Kori thought for a moment, tapping her chin with her finger. "Dare," she decided. 

Vic looked around the circle for inspiration. "Um...Ooh I got it. Show us one weird talent you have." He looked proud at what he thought was a pretty clever dare, but the others looked bored. It was probably going to be something boring like whistling or painting her nails to look like a heart.

However, Kori got everyone's attention easily when she pulled a tube of lipstick from her purse and tucked it into her cleavage. She blushed and muttered, "I can't believe I'm showing you guys this." She took a breath before ducking her head down for a second.

Everyone watched in confusion as she moved her head a little for about a minute before lifting her face again to reveal perfectly applied bright pink lipstick. "Ta-da," she grinned, putting her lipstick back into her purse.

Her friends applauded, making Kori's face turned beet red as she wiped the lipstick off with her thumb. 

Dick whistled, clapping appreciatively. "Where'd you learn that, princess?" He had to admit he was awfully impressed by Kori's interesting, albeit slightly odd, talent.

"My friend Toni taught me at a sleepover in middle school," Kori answered, still blushing. "To be honest this is the first time it came in handy."

She bit her lip and looked around the circle to get the attention off herself. Pointing to Gar, she asked, "Garfield. Truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"If you could have one superpower, what would it be?"

Gar considered this for a moment."Probably turning into animals. That would be really cool, right? Like I could be anything from a turtle to an eagle to a dinosaur. Yeah, that'd be awesome." He smiled at the thought. Looking around the circle, his eyes fell on Dick. "Grayson, truth or dare?"

Dick rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses. "Dare," he answered easily. 

"Tell us why you hate Bruce Wayne so much."

Dick blinked. "Wait, what?"

Gar leaned back on his hands. "I dare you to tell us why you don't like your dad. It seems to me like he's really nice and he took you in and stuff, and yet you keep rebelling against him. I want to know why."

Dick smirked. This kid had guts. "Listen, I don’t hate Bruce, all right? It’s just...You all know about how he is, right? Billionaire playboy, really fun guy to be around. But he's actually kind of the opposite. Don't get me wrong, he's not mean or abusive or anything like that. He's just...he's not really all _there_ emotionally. It's like talking to a brick wall sometimes. He's nice and he loves us and stuff, but it's kind of hard to know where you stand." He rolled onto his back and put an arm behind his head, staring at the ceiling.

"He's always like, 'You need to behave. You can't go around beating up kids just because they anger you. You have to be in control of yourself at all times,’ whatever that means. Honestly, it's suffocating. I'd probably leave if it weren't for my brothers and sister," he admitted.

"What are they like?” Raven asked.

Dick smiled. "They're great. Damian's the youngest. He's the only one who's actually related to Bruce. I swear he's like a carbon copy of the guy, the little demon spawn. He's awesome though, like a real baby brother. Then after him there's Tim. He's in middle school right now at the top of his class. He's like a genius or something, smarter than even Logan over here," he laughed, his mind wandering happily. Had he been more aware, he probably would have remembered where he was and put up more of an effort to maintain his tough guy persona. "Cass is third oldest and my only sister. She's homeschooled and doesn't talk a lot, but she's still totally cool in her own way. I taught her some acrobatics and sometimes we hang out on the trapeze together."

But then his face hardened when he got to Jason. "Jaybird and I...We were really close. He was pretty rebellious—more than me, if you can believe it—and he liked hanging with the wrong crowds. He used to be a street kid, so that wasn't too surprising. But then he started running with the Red X gang for some reason, even though I was always telling him to stay far away from them. Then one night there was a huge gang fight, and Jason got killed even though he wasn't really even a part of it. He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.” Dick bit his lip, his eyes lost in the emptiness of the white ceiling. 

“After that Bruce changed. He's so worried of losing another one of us that he's even more constricting than before. So...no. I don't hate him, not by a long shot, but he does get on my nerves practically all the time. That’s why the second I graduate I plan on taking off and never looking back "

Vic's eyebrows had lifted halfway through the story and still hadn’t come back down to earth. He'd had no clue about any of this, and he doubted any of the others knew either. "Woah, dude, I had no idea. I can't believe you manage to keep this all from everyone at school, who probably don't even know you're the kid of a billionaire in the first place." 

Dick turned a glare on him suddenly. "Why so surprised? In fact, I seem to recall you saying that nobody notices me anyway. I don't even count, right?" His words were poison on his tongue and stabbed Vic with the sharpness of a blade.

Vic winced, feeling bad for ever bringing that up in the first place. "Listen, I’m sorry about that, Grayson. I was just being stupid, okay? Honest." He waited for a reaction or some kind of acceptance of his apology, but Dick simply shrugged it off and continued without skipping a beat, all hostility lost. 

Dick threw a casual arm over his face, covering his sunglasses, and continued his story. "Anyway, I think that's why I like being fun and cool. It's freeing, I guess. I mean, I don't actively search for trouble. Mostly just helping out the little guy and crap, but you know how it is. Once you get labelled a 'troublemaker' you're basically stuck with it for life. So what’s the point in trying to be any different? I don't mind, though. It's fun to rebel against Bruce and his stupid rules." He grinned mischievously, pointing blindly at Kori with his arm still on his face.

"Princess, your turn. Truth or dare?"

"I already went," she protested.

"So?"

Kori paused, but eventually gave in. "Fine. Truth.” 

Dick sat up excitedly. "Alright, million dollar question." He leaned forward, curiosity burning in his mind. "Are you a virgin?"

Kori's face grew red as a tomato and she shrank back from the curious looks she got. "What? I'm not answering that."

"You have to," Gar insisted.

Kori crossed her arms. "I don't care. I'm not going to justify that with a response. It's not any of your business."

"Just answer the question, Kori," Vic told her. "The sooner you do the sooner your turn will be over.” The others agreed, overlapping with encouragement and demands to know the answer.

Kori fiddled with her braid in embarrassment, biting her lip as she considered her options. "Okay, fine," she gave in. "...Yes, I'm a virgin, okay? Happy now?"

She glared at Dick, who looked pleased for some reason.

Raven raised her hand a little. "So am I," she said, trying to comfort Kori. 

Gar nodded. "Me too. It's not like you have to do it while you're still in high school, right? So you're not alone."

Kori felt relieved to hear that, and she looked at Dick. "What about you, Mr. Sunglasses? Have you ever done it?"

Dick shrugged. "Naw. I have high standards," he answered honestly. "How about you, Sporto?” he asked Victor.

Vic rolled his eyes. "Too busy with football and doing whatever my old man tells me," he chuckled.

"Wait, I thought you were dating Karen?” Kori recalled. "You two still haven't..?” 

Vic blushed, and everyone laughed.

"So uh, can we confirm that everyone here is a virgin?” Dick asked. He was met with nods and exhaled softly. "Cool," he breathed, somewhat comforted by that.

"I don't think there's anything wrong with it, though," Raven said. "It's okay when you love someone."

They nodded quietly, and Kori drummed her fingers in her lap. "So whose turn is it now?"

Dick raised his hand high above his head. "I have one," he announced. Turning his gaze on Garfield, he asked, "What did you do to get detention today?"

The others looked at Gar, as they had all been wondering that too.

Gar spluttered. "Y-You can't just ask that. You didn't even say truth or dare," he protested.

Dick shrugged. "Answer it anyway. Really, I'm curious. You're one of those super smart goody-goodies. How the heck does a golden child like you get Saturday detention?"

Gar shook his head, but they kept goading him on.

"C'mon, Gar, just tell us," Vic encouraged him. Contemplating it, Gar finally gave in and clasped his hands in his lap, looking down.

"Do you...Do you guys know Terra Markov?" He didn't look up to see them shake their heads, but he continued anyway. "She was my best friend since middle school. I knew her better than anyone. We weren't exactly dating, but I was totally in love with her and vice versa. It was nice." His lips turned upward at the memories.

"Then about half a year ago she out of nowhere started hanging out with the wrong crowds. Getting in trouble, drinking, meeting new guys, all that stuff. She was really desperate to fit in. We were never really popular people, you know? It was just the two of us against the world for so long, and I was happy with things that way. But Terra always wanted to be more than just an outsider. She wanted to be cool and popular so badly that she would have done anything to do it. And then she met Adonis. I don't know his actual name, but he's some jerk on the hockey team."

Victor nodded. "Yeah, I know him. Grade A douchebag."

Gar chuckled. "So I hear. Anyway, I guess he asked her out or something, and Terra saw that as her chance. After that he had a pretty good grip on her; she did whatever he told her to do. She followed him around like he walked on water or something. A little after that was when she decided to break ties with me completely. Came over to my place one night and told me that she hated me, that I was worthless and a loser and not good enough for her. She said all I ever did was hold her back. And that...That was the last real time I actually got to talk to her. For months afterward she wouldn't acknowledge me or even notice that I was there. It was like, after her betrayal I didn't even exist anymore. She hung out with cooler people, started getting into trouble, and pretty much became a totally different person.” Gar took a deep breath. “About a month ago I got the news that she died."

There were audible gasps.

Gar bit his lip and wiped his eye. "It was an overdose. I never even got to say goodbye or tell her how I felt or anything. She was just...gone."

"But wait, what does this have to do with you getting detention?” asked Kori.

Gar sighed. "Last week I was hanging out after school in this science lab we always used to meet in. Dr. Light's classroom. It was like our place, I guess. Just Terra and me. While I was there, I found a note to me from Terra. She wrote it some point after she broke things off with me, but I didn't find it soon enough. She said she loved me and that she didn't mean anything she said, she just needed to finally fit in somewhere with cool people.” 

Gar’s hand curled into a fist. “All that, all the things she said and did, and it was just because she freaking wanted to be popular. She died because she wasn't content with the life she already had." He sniffled, wiping his nose with the back of his hand.

"I don't know why, but—but I got angry. Angry at her for doing all this just to be popular, angry at myself for not being good enough for her, angry at Adonis for letting the only person who cared about me die, and I just went... _berserk._ I trashed the science lab completely. It was like—like I was some kind of beast or something. I broke windows, threw computers, broke desks, and within minutes the entire place was trashed."

Gar lifted his head to find everyone staring back at him with wide eyes. They were all thinking the same thing: How could a small innocent kid like Garfield be capable of such rage and destruction?

"Wilson heard me of course. I doubt there was anyone in the whole school who couldn't. I've got four more detentions after this," he said, sniffling once and sheepishly shrinking back from the wide stares still fixed on him.

They were silent. How does someone respond to that?

Eager to get the attention off himself, Gar pulled on a semi-convincing grin and nudged Vic with his leg sprawled out on the floor. "How about you, dude? Why are you here today?" His voice lost the serious tone he'd been using before and regained its light, happy quality, but at this point the other four found themselves wondering if that was his actual self or if it was just a mask. Either way, the mood lifted into a more lighthearted atmosphere.

Victor coughed. "I, uh, kind of cheated on a test. The SAT, actually."

Gar spluttered. "You cheated on the SAT? That's huge, dude! Why?"

Vic pulled his real leg up to his chest and wrapped his arms around it loosely. "I dunno, I...I needed to go to college. I lost my football scholarship, and I figured I'd never get my dad off my back unless I found a way to get to college without it."

"You had a football scholarship?” Dick asked.

"Yup. To Harvard, actually. But the second my leg was out of the picture it got rescinded. Now my old man is even worse than before when it comes to sports."

"What do you mean?” Raven asked.

Vic clenched his fist, the other hand running up and down his arm, feeling the metal underneath the skin. "My life was set for me before the accident. College, future, the big leagues, all that stuff. I was one of the best players this school's ever seen, and Dad couldn't be happier. He always wanted me to be the best. He's a scientist, so he never did sports or anything when he was in school. But for some reason he loved to exploit my talent and make sure I would be the greatest. And I was. Hands down, I was probably the strongest and fastest on the team by far."

"Especially compared to those other pool noodles you call players," Dick scoffed. He received some questioning looks, so he shrugged. "Wally's on the track team, so sometimes Roy and I hang out under the bleachers by the football field while we wait. I might have seen a practice or two," he said with a flippant wave of his hand. "But go on," he said.

Vic shot him a look, but he obliged.

"Anyway, then I lost the leg and more, and suddenly I wasn't the best anymore. At first I was kind of glad. I thought it would be my way out of my dad's control because I could finally quit the team, but instead he just made me work harder. I'm pushed to my limits every day, even if I can't because of my stupid prosthetics. I've never stood up to him, and I just do whatever he asks because what others options do I have? I feel like a cyborg sometimes. Just following orders blindly, being what everyone else expects me to be." His voice got quieter after that.

"So yeah, I cheated. I don't have a football scholarship anymore, and I figured that would be my only way out of this place. But like an idiot I got caught and now I'm gonna be stuck here in this stupid town forever, always being reminded by my failure," he said.

Vic sniffed, tears leaking from the corners of his eyes.

"You know, sometimes I wish I'd just been killed in that accident. At least then I would have been free from my dad's thumb, but now I'm stuck as the pathetic son who isn't good enough. He keeps making me work harder and harder, even if I can't do it anymore. 'You have to be the best, Victor. You can't just quit because you're disabled. You have to work harder, be better, be worthy. I won't have a washout as a son! Win! Win! Win!'” Vic shouted. He shook his head and made a noise that sounded half laugh and half sob. "God, I hate him. I hate him so goddamn much..." His voice broke, and he pressed the heel of his hand against his wet eyes.

The rest were all crying too, even Dick. He had no idea... He was really beginning to regret all the awful things he'd said to Vic earlier.

"It's kind of like me," Kori said suddenly.

Vic sniffled. "What do you mean?" He couldn't imagine someone like Kori having a life that was anything less than perfect.

"I mean you keep doing whatever your dad asks even if you hate it. You have to if you want to be worth something," she said. "I get it."

Raven scoffed. "Please. You're a princess," she said. "Everyone likes you no matter what you do. You could rob a bank or kill the president and there would still be people bowing at your feet and begging for your approval."

Kori narrowed her eyes. "Only because I do everything in my power to make them like me. Do you know how hard it is to go against everything you believe in like a sheep just so people will like you? It's _exhausting,"_ she said. "I don't even know who I am anymore because I'm trying so hard to measure up to my sister. I may be popular here, but believe me, compared to my sister I’m nothing. Sometimes it feels like I'm an alien.” 

Dick scooted an inch closer to her. "How?"

Kori sniffled. "I'm weird, I never understand slang, I can't do bad stuff like other people do without feeling bad about it, and so much more that just proves I shouldn't even try to pretend I fit in. So I learned a long time ago to just copy everything Komi does, even if it's something stupid like graffitiing all over the girls' bathroom."

"Is that why you're in detention?” Gar asked her.

Kori nodded, looking down at her hands clasped in her lap. "Yes. Komi told me to, so I guess I thought it would get me her approval."

Dick scoffed. "Well that was stupid."

Kori shot a glare at him. "What was I supposed to do? I have to be exactly like her if I want to maintain my status at this school," she said. "If I want to have any worth at all I need to be who everyone wants me to be otherwise I'm garbage!” she shouted.

"What do you want?"

Kori blinked and her next yell died on her tongue. "What?"

"I said," Dick repeated, "What do you want? If your sister wasn't setting the example for you, who would you want to be?"

"I...I'm not sure," Kori answered softly. "I just—I just want people to like me.” She wiped away a tear. “I learned a long time ago that if I want to be noticed, then I have to be who everyone else wants me to be. It’s—it’s all I have." 

"We like you," Vic said. "I like you much better now than I do during school.” 

Kori scoffed as more tears fell. “Well, you shouldn't," she said. "Komi is smart and pretty and she can get away with stuff and I'm—I'm just me.” 

She shrugged hopelessly, pressing her lips together in what could pass for a smile if it weren’t amid tears. “So now you know. Your _princess?_ Your so-called popular girl? She’s nothing but garbage,” she said, forcing out a laugh that somewhere along the way turned into a sob. 

Dick reached out and put his hand over Kori’s, sniffling. There were tear tracks under his sunglasses. “Just for the record,” he said, “I like you better when you’re not like your sister.” 

Kori looked at him for a long time, eventually forming a small smile. 

Vic brushed away a tear from his own eye. "Man, are we all going to turn into our families?” he wondered aloud.

Gar shook his head with conviction. "Never. I'll never be like my foster parents," he muttered. 

Dick turned to look at him, skeptical. "What are you talking about? What could possibly be bad about _your_ picture perfect family?"

"My family's not perfect," Garfield snapped. "Or at least...not anymore. It was, once, but that was a long time ago."

Dick gestured impatiently for Gar to continue, so he did. "My parents were geneticists. We travelled a lot. All over the world, actually. Mostly Africa, which is where I grew up for the most part. They studied all kinds of cool animals and species and stuff. _That_ was when my family was perfect. It was just the three of us for the most part, so my parents and I were really close. They were great," he added, a hint of a smile on his lips. 

Raven shifted in her spot, sitting in a cross legged position. "I'm sorry, _were?"_

Gar's lip trembled, but he clenched his teeth. "They died," he confirmed quietly. "It was a stupid boating accident. They lost control on a river and fell right over a waterfall, and I saw the whole thing from the riverbank."

Kori reached out to him, but Gar shook his head, taking a deep breath. "So after that I came back to America and was put into the foster system. Now I live with Steve and Rita. Rita's incredible—almost enough to replace my real mom. But Steve...I never knew why, but he hates me. He's always telling me I'm not good enough or smart enough. And I try, I really do, but I guess it's just never enough for him."

Vic nudged Gar with his shoulder. "I think he and my old man should go bowling some time," he said. Gar rolled his eyes, but smiled. 

Dick sat up, wiping any stray wetness from under his sunglasses and leaning against the wall. "Wow, we should form a club or something. 'The Most Depressing Kids in School' or 'World's Crappiest Childhoods'." They laughed at that, but nobody admitted that he was probably right. They all knew it, though.

There was a comfortable silence after that. For the first time since entering the library, they all understood each other. It was like they were now connected by tiny threads of their hopes, their fears, their secrets, and everything in between. They had a sense of unity now, like it was them against everyone else who stood in their way.

"So,"Gar started, breaking the silence, "What's going to happen on Monday?"

Kori frowned. "You mean will we all stay friends?"

Gar nodded, and Kori’s frown sank even deeper. "You want the truth?"

"Yeah, I want the truth."

Kori bit her lip before shaking her head. "I'm really sorry, but I don't think we can."

"Bull!” Dick shouted suddenly, startling them all. "Seriously, after he and everyone else here bared their souls to you, you're still going to treat us like today never happened?"

Kori looked down in shame, but she nodded nonetheless.

Dick bared his teeth. "Then you're a bitch," he growled.

Kori looked up defensively with fire in her eyes. "Hey, don't make me the bad guy here! I'm just being honest. Are you telling me that if Garfield or Raven or even Vic came up to you and asked to hang out with you with all your deadbeat friends you would say yes?"

Dick narrowed his eyes. "I would. You see, that's the difference between you and me, princess. I may be an asshole, but at least I'm an asshole who isn't afraid of being judged for who I'm seen with." He looked around the circle accusingly. "Would you guys all do the same, or do you actually have the guts to look one of us in the eyes at school?” he growled.

Gar raised his hand timidly. "I wouldn't be ashamed of hanging out with any of you. I doubt any of my friends would mind either," he offered. "What about you, Raven? Would you talk to any of us?"

Raven's lips quirked. "I don't have any friends, so it doesn't make a difference to me."

Dick shrugged one shoulder. "I don't think Wally or Roy would mind having you hang with us if you want to," he said.

"Yeah, and you can always join me and Joseph at lunch instead of sitting alone all the time," Gar added. 

He turned to Vic, who had been silent up until then. "What about you, dude? Would you ignore us like before?"

Vic wrung his hands nervously, looking down. "Honestly...I have no idea. I definitely _want to._ I've told you guys more than I've probably told anyone in my entire life, but...I don't know. I kind of wish there was a way to be able to see all of you without having to worry about reputations or embarrassment or any of that crap."

Dick looked around at the loft they were currently sitting in. "Well, why not here? It's not that hard to get detention every week, is it? We could just meet here and no friends or parents or anyone will know about it but us. This could be our place—our tower," he said.

The others considered that. Having a safe space where they could be who they are and shake off the weights on their shoulders without needing to worry about their reputations sounded too good to be true. And they all knew that keeping the friendships they built was more important to each of them than permanent records or what having so many detentions would mean for them.

All five met eyes and nodded slowly in silent agreement, grins brightening every one of their faces.

Vic shrugged. "I guess a few more detentions won't kill me. Maybe if I try hard enough my dad will pull me out of football," he chuckled. He turned to Raven. "You know, you still haven't told anyone what you did to get here," he reminded her. The others all nodded, and Raven smiled mischievously under her hood.

"You really want to know why I'm here today?" She paused for effect and laughed quietly as the others waited in suspense. 

"Nothing. I just didn't have anything better to do."

There was a beat of silence that soon erupted into loud laughter that rang all around the library. They all laughed until tears streamed down their faces, letting loose everything they'd been holding for so long.

It took nearly ten minutes for their laughter to cease, and even then each of their faces was sore from the five wide grins that adorned their lips, stretching from ear to ear.

* * *

It was now 3:00. The quintet had descended from what was now officially called the Tower. Vic was digging around in one of the back rooms and found an old jukebox that looked like it hadn't been used in years.

Pretty soon Wake Me Up Before You Go Go was blaring in every corner of the library as the carefree students danced to their hearts' desires. There was nothing to hear besides music and laughter as the friends danced on tables, on top of railings, by themselves, with each other, in every way they knew how. 

They danced until their sides hurt and their lungs ached, and then they danced some more. They released all of their pent up stress and anxiety, which flitted away in gradual wisps as they danced.

After several songs, one by one the five teens fell to the floor, laying limply on the gray carpet as they caught their breath. They lay like that in comfortable silence with nothing but the sounds of their breathing and the occasional breathless chuckle to be heard.

But alas, all good things have to end at some point. Gar reminded them of the essays that nobody remembered to write, and they collectively groaned until Kori sat up. She looked at Gar expectantly. 

"Well, why can't we just all do one together?" 

Vic scoffed. "You just don't want to write your paper, right?"

Kori shoved him but proceeded. "I'm serious, guys. It's easier, and plus by now I think we'd probably all say the same thing. You're the smartest, Gar, so maybe you can write it and we'll all sign it?” she suggested.

Gar considered this before his expression shifted into a playful grin. "Let's do it."

Ten minutes and one essay later, and all were gathered around Gar's table, beholding their collective essay. One by one they signed at the bottom, and Gar kissed the paper proudly. "Wilson is going to read this and weep," he said. 

Vic rubbed his head in a way that felt almost brotherly. "Nice job, man. I sure hope he sends us a copy.” 

Dick glanced at the clock on the wall. "As fun as this is, guys, I've got a janitor's closet that's missing me." He gave his friends a parting wave before taking off towards the back of the library and disappearing through the vent in the ceiling.

Kori watched him go with a thoughtful look on her face. "I think I'm going to, uh, g-go use the bathroom," she told the others absently as she left through the library doors. The rest watched her go, already having a vague idea of where she was going.

Vic muttered something under his breath along the lines of "It's about time" and went back to his table to wait until they could leave. 

Garfield and Raven, however, hung back at Gar's table, where their seats were unusually close together. If they noticed, they didn't do anything about it.

"You should try wearing your hood down," he was saying.

"And why is that?"

Gar smiled shyly. "I like being able to see your face.” Raven scoffed, but he shook his head. “No, really. It's...pretty. You shouldn't hide it, Rae." He fingered the edge of her hood, slowly pulling it down and revealing her rarely seen face. 

His green eyes bored straight into her purple ones. "I've got a question for you," he said.

"Ask away," she replied.

Gar hesitated. "I...I still don't get why you hide yourself all the time. I mean, you have a beautiful face, but you hide under a hood. And you're so smart and quick to call anyone out when they're being dumb, but you choose not to. And already I can tell you're stronger than anyone I know, but you hide that too.” 

"That wasn't a question," Raven pointed out.

Gar smirked but still waited for an answer. 

Raven paused before countering with her own smirk. "How about this? I'll tell you if you tell me how someone who's supposedly all smart and good could destroy an entire science lab with his bare hands just because he's pissed."

Gar winced. That stung, but he answered nonetheless. "Inner beasts," he said, nodding towards her. "Your turn."

Raven shrugged. "Inner demons," she said, her lips tugging upward into a smile, mirroring Garfield's.

Gar was speechless for a moment. For so long he'd thought he would never be able to feel again after Terra. He was convinced that after her betrayal and death it would be impossible for him to feel happy ever again. After losing his first love and best friend all at once, everything else seemed so bleak in comparison. But now he found himself having feelings he’d been convinced he'd never be able to feel again, and he wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing.

Without really thinking about it his hand moved under the table until it met Raven's, where he intertwined their fingers together and held tight. To be honest, he had no idea where all of this confidence was coming from. Normally he could barely even talk to his own friends without stuttering or becoming awkwardly quiet, but with Raven he was at ease, and he could tell that she was too. "You know,” he said, “there's this cool pizza place not far from here. Maybe I could show you sometime?” His ears reddened. 

Raven nodded, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "I'd like that," she said.

Gar's face brightened. "Awesome! There's an arcade there, and I can show you how I'm the reigning champion at Mega Monkeys 4.2," he boasted excitedly.

Raven rolled her eyes, though there was no edge to it. "We're having a moment here. Don't ruin it."

* * *

Dick hummed quietly under his breath, having been staring bored at a spider in the corner for the last few minutes. He lifted his head when he heard the doorknob turn, and he was surprised to see Kori open the door, closing it quietly behind her. He sat up. 

"Well hey, princess. To what do I owe this visit?” He stood up so his face nearly level with hers, though still an arm's length apart.

Kori appraised him, her eyes searching his dark sunglasses for the eyes underneath. "Just wanted to stop by and let you know that I've finally figured you out," she said.

"You have, huh?"

"Yup." She took a step closer, barely a foot away from him now.

"Then by all means, enlighten me," he said. 

Kori crossed her arms. "I learned that you're not the rude, obnoxious, stupid bad boy you work so hard to make everyone believe you are," she told him confidently.

Dick crossed his own arms, amused. "Is that so?"

Kori nodded. "Yup,” she said, popping the ‘P.’ “Don't try to deny it. You rebel against authority and get into trouble to keep up your image, but deep down you and I both know it's all an act. You can hide it all you want, but I know you only get into serious trouble if it's to help someone else, and I know that the real reason you hate your dad so much is because you think distancing yourself from your family will keep it from hurting if something happens to them like Jason."

Dick pursed his lips, but he didn't deny a thing, which only confirmed Kori's suspicions. "Same thing with the sunglasses," she continued, staring into the reflective black lenses. "You're hiding behind them. They're your mask." 

Dick swallowed, for once having nothing to say. 

Slowly she reached up, watching him carefully as she pulled off the sunglasses and exposed his eyes for the first time.

They were... wow, they were beautiful. 

Dick's eyes were a breathtaking ocean blue, brighter than any she's seen on any other person. They glistened even in the darkness of the closet, and she wasn't surprised to find them staring intently into her own. For the first time, she could really _see_ him. 

Neither spoke. They simply looked at each other, examining every detail of the other's face and dedicating it to memory. That's when Kori was struck by an unexpected surge of courage, and in one move she grabbed Dick's collar and swept his lips into a hard kiss. 

Even later she would never be able to describe where exactly the sudden confidence had come from, but she was pleased when she felt his arms snake around her to pull her closer to him, deepening the kiss.

Neither knew how long they kissed, nor did they care. But those few minutes were an eternity to them, one they wanted to stay in forever.

All too soon they pulled apart, gasping with grins bright enough to lighten the once dark and depressing closet.

"Why did you do that?” Dick asked, though he couldn't say he was complaining.

Kori shrugged. "Because I knew you wouldn't."

Dick sighed, his eyes locked on Kori's as if gazing into the sun. "Well, I figured you out too, you know," he said.

"Hm? And what did you find out?"

"You think you're worse than everyone around you, so you copy them to try to prove yourself. You think that if you're anything but a clone of your sister you're worthless. But you know what?” 

He swallowed thickly. "You're wrong. In fact, you still have no idea that you're probably one of the best people in this entire godforsaken school, and that no matter how hard you try to be someone else, you're still you. You're still...you’re still dazzling, and beautiful, and funny, and kind, and all of the things that other girls would kill or die to have."

Kori took a shuddering breath when she saw no trace of dishonesty in his face or voice. Dick truly believed what he said, and as he leaned in once more to touch his lips to hers, she started to believe it too.

* * *

It was now 4:00, and the students minus Dick gathered their belongings in preparation to leave. Wilson returned to the library with Dick in tow, addressing them with his booming voice.

"I hope you have all learned something during your incarceration this afternoon, and I expect I won't have to see most of you in here a second time. Have you your essays?" He looked around expectantly as the students began to file past him and out of the library.

Gar followed the other four out of the room, pointing at the single sheet of paper neatly lined up dead center on the front table. "Yes we do, sir.” 

With that they left, leaving Slade alone to read their paper and probably do nothing but fuel his hate for that particular group of teenagers. They couldn't help but be amused by the thought of how he would react when he saw them next week only to do it all over again.

Outside was colder than it had been that morning, and the air now had a sharp chill to it. The five stood outside the entrance of the school, looking out at the parking lot to wait for their transportation to arrive.

"So," Dick began, looking at the others uncertainly. "Will I see you guys next Saturday?"

They exchanged looks, and Vic grinned. "Hell yeah. For once I can say I'm actually looking forward to detention next week," he laughed. "Maybe if I talk back enough in Mr. Blood's class I can get him to give me a few." 

Kori tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I think I'll just drop doing homework in Mr. Mod's English class. Or maybe Home Ec. with Mrs. Goodness."

Dick cracked his knuckles smugly. "Lucky for me I'm booked for the next eight weekends, so I'm good." They all laughed at that, but it faded into a melancholic silence.

Raven was the one who eventually broke it. "You know, it's weird having friends. I never knew it was possible to meet a bunch of strangers and in one Saturday suddenly feel like they're your whole world," she said.

"I could get used to it, though," Gar added, and the others agreed.

Unfortunately, the day couldn't last forever no matter how much they desperately wanted it to. A dark green pickup truck pulled up at the end of the sidewalk, and Vic sighed, looking longingly at his friends. "I gotta go, I guess. See you all next week?"

Dick gave him a reassuring smile and held up a fist, which Vic bumped. "You know where to find us.” 

With one last parting glance, Vic jogged over to the car and got in. The others watched as it drove away, making way for several other cars to pull up in its place.

Raven spotted her father's car, and she walked hand in hand with Garfield until they were beside it. 

She didn't get in immediately; they both wanted to prolong this moment for as long as possible. Of course they would see each other within a week, but at the time, next Saturday felt light years away. Looking into each other's eyes, they leaned in for one last kiss. Neither wanted to pull away, but the impatient honking of a horn snapped them out of their bliss.

Gar remembered the bruise still hidden behind Raven's hood, and he desperately wanted to pound the man in the car to a lifeless pulp for laying a finger on Raven. She saw the clench of his jaw and placed a gentle hand on his face, trying to be reassuring. "It's okay, Gar. I swear I'm fine, all right?" Gar didn't look convinced, and his hands were still curled into fists.

Knowing she’d never convince him, Raven snuck a hand into Gar's pocket and pulled out the penny he'd found earlier, holding it up like a prize.

Gar smirked despite himself. "For luck," he said.

Raven smiled as she climbed into the passenger seat, waving back as the car pulled away. Gar watched, lingering in the street for a few seconds before chuckling softly to himself and running to Rita's Prius, excited to tell her about his unexpectedly extraordinary day.

Across the parking lot, Dick and Kori were walking together to a red Audi, with Kori's friend Donna in the front seat. The pair stopped in front of the hood, facing each other. 

"About next week...” prompted Dick, trailing off expectantly.

"What about it?"

He bit his lip, brushing a stray hair away from Kori's face. "Are we still going to be...y'know..."

Kori held back a giggle. It was amusing to see the usually suave and confident boy she knew be flustered for once. To reassure him, she plucked his sunglasses from his face and placed them over her own eyes, pecking him once more on the cheek. "Can't wait," she said, smiling coyly.

Dick grinned and swept her into his arms, crashing his lips to hers with enough force to leave her breathless. When they separated, they touched their foreheads together, trying to make the moment last as long as possible. 

They were startled by the honking of a car horn, and Kori begrudgingly pulled away, her eyes not leaving Dick's until she got into the car.

Dick stepped back and watched as the car drove away, but revelled in the knowledge that he only had to wait a week to see her again. 

Exhaling loudly, Dick turned around and started the walk back to Wayne manor. He took a shortcut across the football field with his eyes set on the large hill miles away where the mansion stood. To his surprise, for once he didn't dread going home to see Bruce. And to be honest he found himself seeing things in a staggeringly new perspective.

As he thought about what the next weekend and its adventures would bring, Dick smiled widely and threw a triumphant fist in the air.

And every Saturday, without fail, the five good friends would meet in detention, destroying their permanent records but knowing it would always be worth it in the end. Every Saturday they would sit in their tower, talking about anything and everything. 

And even after the school year ended and they no longer had that sanctuary to call their own, that did nothing to stop them.

It turned into days at the beach, to long nights in Gar's tree house, to rainy days spent inside watching movies, to the occasional bad day in which they all immediately gathered to support the friend in need of a smile. And little by little, so slowly that they had no idea it was happening until it was glaringly obvious, their lives changed to the point where they were no longer just five teenagers.

They were one team.

_Dear Mr. Wilson,_

_We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was we did wrong, but we think you're crazy to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us as you want to see us. In the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is more than simply the stereotype we are labeled as. We learned that on the inside we all have the potential to be beasts, and cyborgs, and demons, and aliens, and heroes. We may have entered this room as five messed up teenagers, but we left it as one team. Does that answer your question?_

_Sincerely yours,_

_The Teen Titans_


End file.
